Power Plant
Allied Power Plant The standard Allied Power Plant consists of two turbine-operated generators, specially designed with efficiency, low waste heat, and high power output in mind. Surrounded by a simple fold-out steel structure and topped with two exhaust ports, the Allied Power Plant makes use of a heat dissipating system in the form of a fan and, for emergencies, copper heat sinks. Capable of independent operation, but usually monitored by a team of two military technical specialists (mostly Allied Engineers, eager to get into some sort of cover), a properly assembled power plant runs simply and without much need for supervision or repairs. In operation, highly refined fuel is pumped in from tanks or pipes, and a steady flow of electricity is generated. Designed to handle all transmission, connection and yield variations that might occur within an Allied base, the cramped interior contains transformers, emergency backups, and a large operations console that allows monitoring of the power drain and supply, as well as keep bored operators sane with the electronic entertainment game "Spacewar!" The Power Plant is really a two-part structure. The outer shell housing the plant can be put to work for other power-generating tasks with minimal modifications, even if the interior hardware is completely changed. Experimental models of Power Plants, running on fuel cells, tidal energy, solar panels, and even bacteria are being trialled in some regions. One of the most recent, and more promising, trials, is for the Fusion Power Plant. Consisting of a specially treated sphere of high tensile steel in which the reaction takes place, with supplies of "red-matter" for the gravametric reaction that compresses the hydrogen and boron, as well as the high energy spectrum beam generators needed to initiate and sustain the fusion reaction, the interior of a Fusion Power Plant ceases to resemble that of a conventional one while looking almost identical from the exterior. The most obvious change is seen from above; Fusion is a young technology and its uses are just now being grasped, but even small fusion reactions generate tremendous quantities of energy in the form of heat and neutron radiation. Given the limited efficiency of steam turbines, only a small portion of this energy is actually captured, while the rest is wasted as heat and can be seen dissipating through the exhaust towers. A blue glow from taxed superconducting radiators constantly radiates outward, which has led to rumours of radioactivity spreading among Allied troops. There is no truth in this, of course; besides, radioactive materials don't glow. Well, apart from Jade. Just the Stats Confederate Power Plant The classic modular Power Plant was used throughout the 1950s worldwide by military forces assembling field bases. Consisting of a set of prefabricated parts allowing for the construction of all the vital components of a power station, the components could be assembled within a simple square structure made of any material; the Allies used brick, but the Confederates prefer cinder blocks or concrete. In order to ensure the safety of their power generation, many Confederate power plants are stashed out of the way with simple camouflage netting of unobtrusive designs. Upgrading a power plant with these features is easily done and for very little cost. Behind the Scenes The Power Plant is the Power Plant from the original Red Alert, and can be put back to back with another, giving the appearance of an Advanced Power Plant from Red Alert 1. Soviet Union Reactor The basic Soviet Reactor is a simple, self contained structure, housing all the components required for power generation. The design is highly space efficient, providing a reasonable amount of power while occupying a small area. It is unmanned, though humans can still override the reactor remotely or manually; typically, this is done when the reactor has sustained damage that needs to be addressed. Soviet reactors usually run on coal, as it is available in abundance and is easier to transport than natural gas. Environmentalists have expressed concern over the pollution caused by the burning of coal; however, the Soviet Union has mostly ignored these concerns (and deported them to the gulag, in the case of those living in Soviet territory), as the need for cheap, plentiful electricity outweighs any concerns about the environment, at least in the Union's eyes. The Soviets do have a more environmentally friendly design, though; the Tesla Reactor. Employing esoteric technology (similar to the technology used by Tesla Coils) to convert the energy released by the burning of chemical fuels into usable electricity, the Tesla Reactor, while still generating pollution, is far more efficient than a regular Reactor. However, for a number of reasons, mostly involving the need for several high technology components in order to work, they have not fully replaced conventional Reactors, although bases with Battle Labs are usually able to request the components required for the modification of Reactors to Tesla Reactors. In addition to the environmental advantages, Tesla Reactors can be overcharged to boost their efficiency (and power output). This can be done repeatedly, allowing Tesla Reactors to produce considerably more power than a regular Reactor. The downside of this is that overcharging destabilises the Tesla Reactor, making the Reactor exponentially more fragile with each overcharge. Just the Stats Super Reactor The heavy facilities known as Super Reactors are some of the largest and most prominent buildings one might find in a Soviet base. They serve two purposes; producing vast quantities of energy and accessing upgrades to Soviet base defenses and superweapons. Super Reactors occupy the space of four regular power plants, although the the energy output is slightly less space efficient. They work by using a fuel consisting of a mixture of coal powder and state-secret chemicals that, when burned, produce much more heat for a much longer duration than any known fuel. However, the fuel is extremely unstable, and once burned, leaves behind an extremely dangerous and highly toxic green chemical residue; if a Super Reactor reaches critical system failure due to damage, it explodes in a very violent fashion, devastating the surrounding environment with toxic chemicals. Of course, Soviet command considers it as a trade-off for the power output and capability to support more advanced defences, and continues to advise commanders to build them everywhere possible. The Super Reactor has 3 levels, each unlocking defences and superweapons, as well as providing global upgrades for defences and boosting the Super Reactor's power output. Just the Stats Imperial Instant Generator The Empire of the Rising Sun's technology is among the most advanced in the world, though this comes with a drawback, as the Empire's technology also exacts a significant power drain. Fortunately, the Empire has an incredibly powerful source of energy that they can tap into, based on work done by Imperial scientists into faster-than-light particles: Wave-Force technology, which by harnessing the energy produced through the slowing down of superluminal particles to sub-light speeds could generate tremendous amounts of power. Wave-force technology is tapped as a power source for civilian usage throughout the Empire, with a large portion of Japan's power being provided by large scale Wave-Force power plants. However, the situation for the Imperial military is somewhat different. Obviously, constructing such a large scale power plant in the field is impractical, even with the aid of nanotechnology. At the same time, wave-force generators are large and bulky, and cannot be scaled down to more compact sizes. Thus, Imperial field power plants can only indirectly harness the power of Wave-Force energy, through the burning of chemical fuels synthesized by Wave-Force reactors located well behind the frontlines. Though not as good as harnessing the immense energy of the Wave-Force Reactors directly, the synthetic fuels serve as a convenient and stable form of energy storage, and are also used to run the engines of Imperial vehicles. As even a relatively compact generator can run on these chemical fuels, it makes practical the construction of small, efficient in field power plants that can be assembled quickly. These generators, known as Instant Generators, are a common sight at Imperial field bases. Each Instant Generator is a fully automated structure, regulated by an A.I. which oversees the operation of the generator. In the event of damage, the A.I. is capable of initiating repairs, although it must first receive instructions to do so. Instant Generators generate their power through three small Wave-force generators, which are responsible for the blue glow produced by Instant Generators. The energy produced is completely clean, with no byproducts aside from light and heat. A set of fans help to cool the generators, sucking in air which is later allowed to escape through the Instant Generator's 'chimneys'. Each generator generates a fairly small amount of power, though the A.I. is programmed to increase the power generation of the other generators if one is taken out of commission, thus ensuring a constant power output. Just the Stats Atomic Kingdom of China Atomic Generator If there is one thing that the Atomic Kingdom's technology could be universally described as, it would be power hungry. Fortunately, the Chinese have an immensely powerful source of energy; the power of the atom itself. While the primary interest in Atomic Fission was for bombs, some work had been done into nuclear reactor technology before the bombs fell, and a single prototype reactor was constructed, though never finished. Following the nuclear exchange, the ascendant Atomic Kingdom was able to secure the reactor facility, and with the use of their own research and recovered notes from both Red and Blue Chinese, were able to complete it. With the data gathered from the prototype reactor, the Atomic Chinese were able to create a reactor design that could be deployed on a large scale. This design was the Atomic Generator. From a standardised duplicator blueprint, Atomic Generators can be constructed on the battlefield. Each Atomic Generator only needs a small amount of Jade to initiate and sustain the nuclear reaction; the Jade used to power the Generator is usually in the form of refined "fuel rods". While it is not known to sources outside of China how much power an Atomic Generator can produce, it is assumed that an Atomic Generator's output is greater than the battlefield power plants of other factions. Atomic Generators are believed to be of a boiling water design, using water as a coolant and a neutron moderator. The reactor core heats the water, which then turns into steam which is used to drive a set of steam turbines, following which the steam flows into condensers which condense the steam back into water, before being fed back into the reactor core pressure vessel to be heated again. Excess heat is allowed to escape through the cooling tower on top of the structure. Each Atomic Generator is manned by a team of clone technicians, with full knowledge of its operation. It should be noted that while powerful, Atomic Generators will be irreparably damaged beyond a certain point; loss of coolant from damage can result in a loss of control over the nuclear reaction, with the resultant release of radiation and steam explosions often causing damage to the surrounding environment. Fortunately, until the generator suffers critical damage, it is possible for the clone operators to salvage and repair the reactor, given enough time and resources. Anti-Matter Generator The Atomic Kingdom's initial atomic generator designs were very powerful, being able to produce vast amounts of heat to be converted to usable power. However, with the vast quantities of energy the Royal Guard consumed, even this was not enough. They needed a power source even greater than that of fission. Fortunately, they already had such a power source -- Anti-Matter. The solution was obvious; an Anti-Matter Generator, which would harness the vast quantities of energy produced by the mutual annihilation of matter and anti-matter. Work was started immediately, and before long the Atomic Kingdom had duplicator blueprints ready for production. The resultant piece of engineering was an impressive display of Atomic Chinese technological capabilities. The generator itself can be broken up into multiple parts; on one end of the generator, there is the anti-matter production reactor, where anti-matter is produced. This anti-matter is then pumped into special, planar shielded containers for storage, until it is ready to be used. At the opposite end of the structure is the storage area for regular matter. Then, in the centre of the structure is the reaction chamber, where the actual annihilation reaction takes place. Matter and anti-matter are injected in precisely measured quantities into this chamber, where they annihilate. The resultant release of energy causes the inner walls of the reaction chamber to be heated up. From there, water is used to cool the chamber walls, turning into steam; similarly to the Atomic Generator, this steam is then used to power the turbines which convert the energy into usable electricity. The design is extremely powerful, capable of producing staggering quantities of energy, but also very inefficient; a great deal of the energy released is in forms that the Atomic Chinese are unable to harness, and so this energy goes to waste. The planar containment shields also require a lot of power to maintain, which eats into the generator's power output. Then, there are also the various dangers involved; it is necessary to maintain a constant containment of the anti-matter; any breach, however minute, could have catastrophic results. Given that aside from accidents there is also the possibility of weapons fire breaching the generator, the Atomic Chinese thought to install powerful point defence weaponry; though these too draw upon the generator's power output, it is considered well worth it, as the alternative to having a little less power available--an accidental annihilation reaction resulting from a breach or containment system failure--would be a far worse result. Syndicate Zero-Point Generator The Syndicate rely primarily on large scale power plants to satisfy their energy demands. Massive fossil fuel burning power stations dot Syndicate controlled territories, powering industries, businesses, and homes. For the most part, these are sufficient to meet demand for the Sprawls and the Syndicate. Of course, there are issues with the Syndicate's reliance on such sources of power. The most obvious one is pollution; the power corporations' complete disregard for any sort of emissions control means that Syndicate power stations are just as polluting, if not even more so, than those of the Soviets. For the most part, no one cares. The power corporations are happy, since the power plants are highly profitable. The oil and gas corporations are happy, since they make a profit selling to the power corps. The Sprawl dwellers are mostly happy, because they get cheap electricity and everyone knows to stay indoors when it rains. Besides, it's not like one can't just get a pair of mechanical lungs if their old ones give out. One small group of Sprawl-dwellers, however, decided that the pollution was a problem. As some in the group capable engineers, they decided to form a small start-up to develop a cleaner power source. Despite a lack of funding, they succeeded remarkably well, developing a small generator that was both clean and cheap. Dubbing their invention the Zero-Point Generator, the group intended to market it and grow rich from the profits. Unfortunately, the power corporations heard of this development, and were horrified by the implications. A non-fossil fuel burning power source that was cheap enough to compete with their power stations, and small enough to fit in the back of a truck? The zero-point generator threatened to ruin the energy, oil, and gas industries. As this was a thoroughly unacceptable prospect, Legion Security was promptly contracted to acquire the generator plans and any examples, and also "deal with" the start-up appropriately. This was accomplished with all the typical efficiency and speed one would have expect from Legion Security, but after looking at the plans for the generators, the private military contractor decided that it wasn't being paid enough to deliver the generator plans to the power corporations, and in fact decided that the generators would be immensely useful for their own operations. Pissed off about this development but unwilling to challenge Legion Security, the corporations gave in to the demand. Now, these generators are a common sight at Legion Security field bases, supplying structures with electricity. Their inner workings are a closely guarded secret, though given the name most believe it to somehow utilise zero-point technology to generate power. Category:Buildings